Chapter 1.1

“Shouldn’t you give me a little time to prepare mentally?”

I grumbled briefly at him for sending me so suddenly.

But I was curious about both my appearance and the room’s scenery, so I got up anyway.

As I carefully stepped out of bed, removing the covers, I saw my reflection in the mirror opposite.

Luxurious, curly blonde hair was swaying with each step.

As the light from the window hit it, a golden trail followed the movement of my hair.

Approaching the mirror, I could finally see my face properly.

I raised my hand and gently stroked my cheek.

“Wow, this is me.”

I never thought I’d say such a cliché line.

Gentle eyes with mysterious purple irises, cheeks flushed pink, a small, straight nose, and a delicate, white face.

Though still looking youthful, there stood a beautiful girl that no one could deny would grow into a peerless beauty in just a short time.

“With this face, why? Now I’ll live well.”

After finishing my appreciation of my beauty, I turned from the mirror and carefully looked around the room.

In the center was a red bed, extravagantly adorned with jewels. The entire room was decorated with elaborate patterns and gems, to the point of giving me a headache.

There was no need for further description.

‘Perfect for being called nouveau riche.’

It was clear that Lora’s defensive mechanism like this would have made her look even more ridiculous.

Turning my gaze to the opposite side, I saw a large door on the right wall. Opening it revealed a spacious drawing room.

It was the guest reception room I had seen in Lora’s memories, but it had never actually received any guests.

Returning to the bedroom, I went to explore the dressing room and bathroom inside.

The dressing room was filled with hundreds of extravagant dresses, and the bathroom was gleaming with white marble.

The studio apartment where I used to live seemed smaller than even this bathroom.

To give such a room even to an illegitimate child. The Epine family, despite being merely a Count’s household, was truly incredibly wealthy.

I made a decision.

“I should quietly enjoy it all without making myself disliked.”

It was a decision I could make only because I didn’t know.

That Lora’s nasty temperament had already been unleashed.

***

My hope of quietly escaping was shattered.

“Haa. Calm down a bit,”

“Shut up! Because of you, Anna…”

My life was in danger just ten minutes after the dimensional transfer.

Lora’s reflection in the mirror looked to be in her late teens, so I thought her mischief would have started by now.

But I didn’t know the situation was this serious.

“If you hadn’t fired her, Anna wouldn’t have ended up like that!”

The man in servant’s attire, with his eyes half-crazed, was trying to tear up the paper in his hand. It was an attack magic scroll.

While I was busy exploring the room, there was a knock at the door, and I told them to come in without any suspicion.

The servant who entered with a grave face locked the door tightly, and only then did I realize the seriousness of the situation.

‘I never imagined this.’

The servants usually didn’t dare to come near Lora’s room. There wasn’t even a guard in front of Lora’s room.

So, there was absolutely no one to save me now.

My mind went blank at this trial that came as soon as I arrived.

“I did fire her, but I also didn’t…”

“What nonsense is that? Speak clearly! Why on earth did you do it? Why?”

I don’t know either. Such trivial memories, trivial from Lora’s perspective, didn’t come to mind easily.

I tried to apologize with a blurred gaze.

“I’m sorry about that,”

“That kind of shallow apology won’t cut it. You’ll have to pay for your sins today!”

It didn’t work at all.

Right, it would be funny if a man who came to avenge his beloved woman would back down with just an apology.

‘…Still, couldn’t he back off a little?’

It wasn’t even something I did, and I felt so wronged but couldn’t say anything.

“So what exactly happened to Anna after she was fired?”

I asked while rolling my eyes, looking for an escape route. The door behind him was firmly closed.

“After being fired like that, Anna eventually fell ill and is bedridden. Our marriage…”

The servant started rambling with unfocused eyes.

While he was giving a long monologue, I moved one step towards the table.

“What are you doing! Don’t move!”

And I was caught red-handed.

“Fine, if that’s how you want to play it. Let’s just end this.”

He raised the magic scroll, seemingly having made up his mind.

No, what did I do? I just moved one step.

I felt wronged, but this was a moment to stay calm.

I reached behind my dress, out of his direct line of sight, and grasped a candlestick.

I deliberately spoke to him, trying to divert the man’s attention while putting strength in my hand.

“Is that what Anna would want?”

“What?”

The man’s eyes wavered slightly, and the hand holding the scroll loosened.

At that moment.

Whoosh-

I threw the candlestick with all my might.

“I’m sorry! I’ll compensate for the damage later!”

Thud-

“Ugh.”

Thump-

The man collapsed.

Not from the candlestick I threw, but from someone’s fist.

“What?”

A figure instantly broke through the door and subdued the servant. While I was still trying to grasp the rapidly changing situation, the man who had pinned down the servant turned to look at me.

“Are you alright?”

Along with his solemn voice, his sparkling amber eyes captured my attention.

With glossy short gray hair, he was strikingly handsome to the point of widening one’s eyes, but his expressionless face gave him a sharp impression.

When I remained silent, he approached me.

“You don’t seem to be hurt.”

A standoff ensued as he examined me and I pondered who this person was.

‘He doesn’t seem to have ill intentions.’

At that moment, knights and servants began rushing in. They seemed to have come running after hearing the sound of the door flying off.

“What happened?!”

And so our strange confrontation ended.